23 February 2010

Blood oranges are juicy, sweet with a dark red interior and are slightly less acidic than regular table oranges. Originally from Sicily (Italy) and Spain the blood orange has gained in popularity and can be found fresh or in juice form in many local grocery stores. Blood oranges contain a pigment called anthocyanin which is not typically found in citrus but rather more common in other red fruits and flowers. Not only is the inside of the orange darkly pigmented but depending on the variety the outside may also have dark washes of red. What we find here in our stores probably are grown in either California of Texas. U.S. grown blood oranges are in season from late fall to early spring.

As Elise of Simply Recipes says, "Those of you who love blood oranges don't need to be told how exquisitely wonderful they are. In the kingdom of citrus, blood oranges are royalty. You know that every bite is an explosion of sweet, deep orange flavor, with hints of raspberry." If you've never had a blood orange, or have shied away from them because of the name, think "Sangria" which in Spanish means "blood" and get yourself to a store that carries them. You will be delighted by them."

I brought my first blood oranges of the season home from the store with the thoughts of making an olive oil cake. Since blood oranges are grown in Italy and Spain I thought an olive oil cake would be the perfect marriage of flavours. Olive oil is used for baking in countries, instead of butter, where there's plenty of it. It makes your cakes dense and rich and faintly fruity. Last year I made a delicious Orange Olive Oil Cake from a recipe from Canadian chef Anna Olson.Her recipe would have worked beautifully with the blood oranges but I decided to try something new . I guess that is the food blogger in me:D Sometimes you are just afraid to upset the proverbial apple cart and don't want to mess with perfection. Well sometimes you just have to take the plunge when you find a recipe that just sounds amazing. I mixed gently, watched my masterpiece in the oven closely, waited impatiently for it to cool, sprinkled it liberally with icing sugar and then sliced into it. And amazing it was!!!! There is just something about olive oil cake that just "turns my crank":D With this experiment I was happy to find the results were a perfectly cooked and delicately crumbed cake. I know this is something I will be making again and again in it's simplicity.

You will also see that the recipe calls for buttermilk. Every cook should have a quick fix substitute ready because, I don't know about you, but buttermilk is not an item that is usually in my refrigerator. Few recipes today require buttermilk, but, when you do make buttermilk recipes, you know what happens. The rest of the buttermilk container from your last buttermilk recipe tends to get lost in the fridge, and you end up tossing it when it expires. By adding acid in the form of either one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to a cup of milk, you can create a buttermilk substitute. Unfortunately, the rich tang that is found in true authentic buttermilk will not be there. Vinegar works best, but lemon juice will work in a pinch, so never discount it. You can also substitute the same amount of plain yogurt that you would need of buttermilk. Again, the tang found in buttermilk will not be present, but since yogurt is also rich the recipe will not suffer. Or...this is the easiest substitute of all. Use plain old milk. That’s right, plain milk. Buttermilk is simply the liquid that is removed in the butter making process. Buttermilk is actually low in fat, which most people don’t expect. To thicken the milk and make it slightly sour, add 1-3/4 teaspoons of cream of tartar to an eight-ounce cup of regular milk.

One word of warning if your blood oranges are fully ripe juicing and supreming your oranges will be an extremely messy business!!! You will really see why they call them blood oranges!!

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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Grate zest from 2 oranges and place in a bowl with sugar. Using your fingers, rub ingredients together until orange zest is evenly distributed in sugar.

Supreme an orange: Cut off bottom and top so fruit is exposed and orange can stand upright on a cutting board. Cut away peel and pith, following curve of fruit with your knife. Cut orange segments out of their connective membranes and let them fall into a bowl. Repeat with another orange. Break up segments with your fingers to about 1/4-inch pieces.

Halve remaining orange and squeeze juice into a measuring cup. You will have about 1/4 cup or so. Add buttermilk or yogurt to juice until you have 2/3 cup liquid altogether. Pour mixture into bowl with sugar and whisk well. Whisk in eggs.

In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Gently whisk dry ingredients into wet ones. Switch to a spatula and fold in oil a little at a time. Fold in pieces of orange segments. Scrape batter into pan and smooth top.

Bake cake for about 55 minutes, or until it is golden and a knife inserted into center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes, then unmold and cool to room temperature right-side up. Serve with whipped cream and honey-blood orange compote, if desired. I adore my olive oil cake sprinkled liberally with icing sugar!!!

Serves 8 - 10

Note: To make a honey-blood orange compote, supreme 3 more blood oranges according to directions above. Drizzle in 1 to 2 teaspoons honey. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir gently.

You are reading this post on More Than Burnt Toast at http://morethanburnttoast.blogspot.com. Content must be credited to this author.

45 comments:

As you may know, I'm not much of a dessert person but I've tried pound cakes made with olive oil and always enjoyed them. The added bonus of blood oranges is really appealing. If we lived closer, I'd come over for a cup of coffee and a slice.

Val, I love cake and this one is right up my alley. It's very clever of you to combine these two ingredients. I'm, with Joan. If I lived closer I'd invite myself over for a slice with a strong cup of coffee.

I need to try my hand at olive oil cake. I haven't made one yet and this is calling my name.

Blood oranges are fun!

I so hear you on the buttermilk thing. When I buy it, I do try to make more recipes out of it before it goes bad, but you can only eat so many biscuits and pancakes before your waistline starts to protest.

Using olive oil allows the flavor of the blood oranges and other ingredients to come forth. It also helps to naturally maintain the freshness for baked cakes. The idea of blood oranges is really appealing.

Citrus is right up my street Val, and I wanr blood oranges (*sulk*). I'd love to make this. It's beautiful, but we are just not a 'blood orange' country he he!BTW, I keep buttermilk in my fridge at all times, and am now cutting back on my coffee/milk and substituting it with a glass of buttermilk instead!

I've been looking for an olive oil cake BUT you're showing me one with olive oil AND BUTTERMILK! I love buttermilk and I love cooking/baking with it.Before I found enough recipes and ways to use it before it past a good till date ... drum roll here ... I froze it in ice cube trays and then sealed it in plastic bags until I needed it. It's not much good to drink after it's frozen but it bakes just dandy.Your cake looks ideal to me.

I just recently found your site and love it!! I just made your blood orange and olive oil cake. I followed the recipe to a 'T'(with the exception that I did add the additional juice from supreming the oranges - perhaps I should not have). I baked it for extra time and when I turned it out of the pan, a large portion stuck to the bottom of the pan, it did not rise well, and the olive oil taste was very strong - wondering if you had any suggestions for my next try??!!

The size of the pan always makes a difference when making a cake. When making an olive oil cake the quality of the olive oil also makes a big difference!!!! probably the most important aspect. I believe this recipe came from the New York Times and it worked well for me.

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My blog More Than Burnt Toast has been my passion for almost 9 years and has evolved with me over time as I have gained confidence in the kitchen. Follow my travels through Italy and Greece one recipe at a time, upcoming cooking classes at local Okanagan wineries and restaurants, as well as daily experimentation in my own kitchen. Every day we should be excited about what we are eating even if it just means making use of a wonderful find at our local farmers market. I look forward to getting to know you.